1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to severe environment jackets providing insulation to the torso and arm portions of the body, and more particularly relates to such jackets having removable sleeves and designed for use in areas where there is a danger of hypothermia.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is customary in very severe and cold environments to wear large, well insulated jackets for retaining body heat and to protect the body against the cold elements whether for active work or strenuous play.
In very cold climates, such jackets usually are designed to cover the arms and the torso portions of the body, terminating just below the buttocks to allow the legs full freedom of movement.
Such jackets are frequently filled with down which provides for very excellent heat retention. Down filled jackets are quite bulky, however, the down filling having a tendency to expand, to spread and to occupy as much volume as the jacket design will allow. Alternatively, many jackets are filled with synthetic fibers with somewhat lesser insulating qualities for the same volume but are nonetheless of comparable thickness, enough to hamper arm movement. As a consequence, down or fiber filled vests which cover only the back and chest portions of the wearer from the neck to the waist have become popular with active, cold environment workers and sportsmen. Such vests are open at the arms to allow the arms full freedom without the bulk of jacket insulation.
As used in this specification, the term "jacket" is used to indicate an outer garmet for covering the trunk or torso of the body, and may or may not necessarily include sleeves. The term "vest" or "vest portion" is used to indicate a covering for the trunk of a body but would not include covering over the arm, except for some incidental covering of the arm around the shoulder portion, in accordance with the particular construction of the jacket arrangement.
With vests, the heat loss through the opening can be excessive. When the temperature drops, the wearer usually requires arm coverings. It has been known to provide cold environment jackets with removable sleeves, so that the wearer has the option of having sleeves which hinder arm movement while providing additional body covering, or of removing the sleeves to allow for vigorous arm movement when necessary. Such sleeves are usually fastened to the vest or torso portion with a zipper fastening arrangement, although other fasteners may have been used.
Some persons working in a very cold environment have found that despite the cold, it is necessary to have full freedom of the arms in order to perform certain tasks. For example, paramedics and physicians who regularly patrol ski slopes often find that it is highly desirable to have no bulky arm sleeves while they are working vigorously on an unfortunate skier downed on the slopes. Some ski slope workers, such as those on dynamite patrol and lift line repair also find that regardless of the temperature, it is necessary to have full freedom of the arms in order to accomplish difficult tasks swiftly.
However, such workers and medics find it desirable, even necessary to have insulating sleeves covering their arms when going to and from the locations of their tasks, or while skiing generally on the slopes. It is necessary therefore to remove the sleeves and to dispose of them somewhere around the work location while attending their tasks. The sleeves while lying in the environment get wet and are quite useless, but nonetheless have a substantial amount of insulation.
It is highly desired to maximize the heat loss protection afforded to a worker in a very cold environment, in spite of the requirement to remove the sleeves from his jacket at certain times. It is also desired to take maximum advantage of all heat insulating material when the environment is severe and cold, in order to avoid hypothermia.
In brief, in accordance with one aspect of the invention, a combination jacket and vest garment is provided having bulk type insulation protecting the back and the chest of a wearer. The vest is closed in the front by a zipper connecting vertically across the stomach and chest portion of the torso. An extended neck portion covers the neck. Sleeve portions are provided which can be removably attached to arm openings in the vest to form the jacket. The arm sleeves have insulation fill similar to that comprising the vest portion. The arm sleeves terminate at an outer end in a wrist designed to fit elastically to provide a reasonably air tight end around the wrists to prevent air drafts coming therethrough. The jacket has retaining means for attaching the arm sleeves within the jacket in a predetermined coalition.
When a sleeve is removed, the end having the fastening device for coupling the sleeve to the vest can be inverted inside the sleeve itself to present a generally cylindrical end to the sleeve. This end is then suitable to fit within an inside pocket positioned on the inside of the front flaps of the vest. A strap horizontally aligned and connected to the inside of the jacket can receive the other end of the arm sleeve to hold the arm sleeve in a generally vertical orientation inside the vest.
The sleeve then forms an additional layer of insulation over a substantial and large area of the chest and stomach when the jacket is closed. The increased insulation provides a substantial reduction in heat loss from those areas, where heat retention is critical in preventing hypothermia. The strap may be constructed having a fastening type retaining surface, such as a Velcro, hook and pile arrangement to secure the arm sleeve in the retained orientation on the inside of the jacket. Other retaining means and fastening means are available.
Varying orientations of the additional insulation provided by the detached arm sleeves are described in alternative embodiments. Alternative embodiments, further, include front pocket arrangements for retaining working tools in a vertical opening pocket, while providing a side opening entrance for hand warming purposes.
The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the invention, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be better understood in the following description considered in connection with the accompanying drawing in which several preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only, and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention.